It’s Fiddlesticks’ birthday! And we are going to a concert! This is the second time we have gone to one. The first time we did not know what to expect. But now that we do, we’ll be ready to enjoy it.

For both of us, music had become a part of our lives, something that we can share and we wanted our now two year old son to do so too. But the question we had was what did that meant. We’ve seen the fads that listening to music would make a child smarter but we did not want any part of that. Because we were also not interested in a passive child.

As we have exposed him to music in our lives, he has listened to my wife’s playing the piano, watched videos with music in the background and of performances, and yes, even some videos aimed at toddlers that included classical music. But he does not just listen and watch. we are thoroughly entertained by his response to the music. In the ways of a two year old with limited oral skills and coordination, he sometimes just listens, sometimes he sings along, sometimes he pretends like he is conducting the piece, and sometimes he tries to dance ballet, sometimes hip-hop, and sometimes just jumping and moving to the rhythm.

We’ve brought him to concerts, recitals, and performances and appreciate the venues where you are not just a spectator, but you can react and respond to music as you experience it. And that is what I most enjoy about Fiddlesticks. The relatively modern traditions of being
quiet and not responding to a performance are put aside, and we can react to what we see. We enjoy the performers interacting with the kids sharing their joy of playing.

And this is what we want our son to experience as he grows. Not a world where he is a spectator, but a world where he takes in the environment and responds to it. And someday, create something to add to this environment.